


Ascend.

by makeshiftrolley



Series: skies of heleus [3]
Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: F/F, Meridian, Minor Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Canon, Remnant Vaults, Unofficial Sequel, Warnings May Change, remnant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-01-05 12:49:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18366362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makeshiftrolley/pseuds/makeshiftrolley
Summary: It's been three years since Ryder has defeated the Archon and saved Meridian. For the last few years, Ryder has kept a desk job since Tann decreed they do not need a human pathfinder anymore.That is until Meridian' control fucks up and messes up Heleus' ecosystem.





	1. girl of space, rise up.

“I don’t care.”  
  
A storm rages outside Port Meridian, killing everything in its path and Tann dares to argue about keeping her here at the Landing Day celebrations. Ryder straps her Disciple shotgun on her back. She checks her armour. The metal plating is smooth and clean despite the lack of use for many years.  
  
“Kallo, can you fly this?” She climbs inside a shuttle parked at Hyperion’s hangar. They neither have the Tempest nor the Nomad; both are locked up on the Nexus.  
  
“She’s not the Tempest but I can manage,” Kallo says.  
  
“Pathfinder, let Kandros and the Resistance handle this,” Tann argues, “the people are waiting for you, for their hero. Isn’t that what you always wanted?”  
  
In another time, yes, when the universe knew nothing of her name and she stood behind the shadows of giants. The fame, the glory—the Hero of Meridian, she wanted them all. And she got them.  
  
But fame has a price, and Gabriela Ryder pays for it with her title. While the pathfinders from other arks explore and find homes for their people, Ryder stays in Meridian, filing papers for Tann and the other Directors. A storm bursts out of Meridian’s control chamber, carving death and destruction along its path. It threatens the lives of the port, and Tann argues about fame and glory.  
  
“Director, tell them I’m gonna risk my life to save their goddamn asses,” Ryder says and closes the shuttle on Tann’s perturbed expression.  
  
  
They zip through the clouds, flying into the eye of the storm. A thick fog blankets the epicentre and blocks their visibility. Meridian's control chamber is a shadow hidden behind layers of cloud. Goosebumps prick her nape.  They’ve explored the unknown before, amid chaos. She shouldn’t be afraid.

“This is how far I can go Ryder,” Kallo says, “I have to drop you off here.”

The shuttle descends. Ryder jumps off; Cora and Vetra follow suit. A cloud of ash puffs from the ground they land on. Dry grass crunches beneath their feet. The horizon is a sea of fog; Ryder can only see shadowed shapes in the distance.

“Kallo, meet us at the LZ when we’re done,” Ryder calls, her voice drowned by the storm’s vicious howls.

“Affirmative, Ryder.”

The shuttle flies away. Ryder checks her map; her Omni tool casts dark shadows on her brown skin. She configures her Omni tool, connecting the map to SAM. “Okay SAM, where’s the entrance?”

“Comparing our location with the maps surveyed from Meridian, I conclude that we are 900 meters away from Meridian Control,” SAM chirps in the AI’s usual monotone.

“But where is it?”

“I have placed the coordinates in your Omni tool, Pathfinder,” SAM says.

They follow SAM's coordinates--the north star in this sea of fog. Ryder tenses. The storm has obscured every familiar landmark in the clearing she feels the foreboding dread. Like a kett ambush awaits at the entrance, and she's fighting for Heleus, for her brother's life.

“What do you think we'll find inside?” Cora asks, her voice carrying a hopeful lilt like they've arrived at Heleus yesterday. She aches for exploration as Ryder does.

“Don't know. Something that would stop the storm, hopefully?” Ryder says. Last time, they found a marvel--a central network. An advanced technology, only the Prothean ruins Ryder encountered rival it. But no Prothean device has the ability to terraform wasteland planets and bringing life nor were they able to disrupt weather patterns.

The sky rumbles and cracks. Lightning shoots out and strikes the ground, sending waves of shock. Ryder conjures a shimmering dome with her biotics, protecting them from the shockwaves. They ascend, rolling on the curvature of the barrier.

Ryder's hands are on fire. She screams. Gathering the energies of her biotic barrier and the electric waves, Ryder unleashes a shockwave of her own. The energy sweeps through the clearing, sucking the life from the green foliage.

Light flashes inside the dark clouds. The sky rumbles--another lightning bolt. Ryder raises her palms, the heat searing her flesh. She inhales, closing her eyes and focusing her biotics onto her hands. She exhales and let’s go.

Slowly, a biotic globe emerges from her palms. She pushes, muscles tight from fatigue. The globe is only the size of her palm.

“Ryder?” Vetra tenses.

A bolt of lightning strikes at them. Ryder’s biotic globe bursts. _Shit_ . Ryder pulls all of her biotics into her palms again but nothing comes out. _Shit, shit, fuck_.

The shockwaves roll. With no biotics, Ryder has only one other option.

“Run!”

A silhouette of an imposing structure clears as they dash through the fog. Meridian control. Ryder picks up her pace. The next hundred meters feels like a marathon. Ryder drops her head between her legs, catching her breath.  Her legs are sore and her feet ache but they made it. They fucking made it.

It’s as she remembers it. A door lined with indents, designed to keep out invaders. Or protect the Remnant creators from catastrophic storms caused by the central network.

“Okay SAM,” she pants. “Let’s interface.”

Opening her Omni tool, Ryder places her hand on the door. Light runs through the indents and circles around her palm. The wind howls, whipping at her helmet. Another crack. Another grumble. Static clings on her armour. There’s another storm coming and the door remains closed.

Ryder’s head throbs as she pushes hard. “Come on.”

The door groans, sliding back to reveal Meridian’s heart. Dust settles by the entrance; lightning strikes the clearing. They rush in, hide behind a structure. Shockwaves roll from the clearing and Ryder braces for impact.

The door shuts in time. Ryder breathes, that was close.

Meridian Control is as beautiful as she remembered. Pillars reach up for the heavens; intricate patterns decorate the floor. Meridian Control stretches wide and the Remnant creators were only limited by their imagination. She observes the path ahead. Remnant machines line the corridors like statues in a museum. They should have attacked them by now.

“SAM, so how do we get to the central chamber from here?”

There's a long pause before SAM responds. “There is a disturbance in my geographical positioning system. I cannot determine where the central chamber is.”

“Seriously?”

“That wasn’t a joke, Pathfinder. I was being serious.”  


“You managed to find it without SAM last time,” Vetra says.

“I didn't.”

“Oh right, I forgot. Jean's spirit led you there,” Vetra teases. She is half right. Last time, she...linked with her brother telepathically or something. She can’t describe it with words. She saw through his eyes, heard his anguished cries reverberating through the walls and felt her--his head splitting into two. And _he_ was with _her_ as an apparition guiding them through the halls.

If she closes her eyes, she can still feel his hand tugging hers like they were kids playing in their lolo's backyard.

“I didn't mean for you to try it again,” Vetra says.  “Which by the way don't. I'm just saying your brother might be in a--” She fidgets with her mandibles and lowers her gaze.

Ryder blinks.

Oh.

“Okay, I did not need that mental image,” she stammers, her cheeks heating up.

“And neither did I!” Cora says.

Following the path of silent machines is the only option they have. It's the worst option when a raging storm threatens Port Meridian. Each corner they turn leads them to a different corner, another door or a dead end. They're no closer to the central chamber and time is slipping away from her fingers.

“Okay, let's stop,” Ryder says. She grasps her knees, gasping quick, short breaths.

“Now?” Vetra says. “But we're so close. I'm sure after this door, we'll be at the central chamber.”

“We've passed through that door five times. It's another hallway.”

“Actually,” SAM's cool mechanical voice chirps--a welcomed sound in their desperation. “You have passed through this door fifteen times in the last hour.”

“You can do that but you can't tell us where this chamber is?” Cora complains.

“I can process these images Ryder sees in real time and store them as data into blocks in my mainframe,” SAM explains. Any interest Ryder has for data storage--her field of expertise--disintegrates with his monotone. “However, without a connection with Meridian's control, I cannot generate a map and find your exact location relative to the central chamber.”

Ryder groans. She sits on the ground, holding her head in her hands. Memories flash through her mind; of bits and pieces struggling to fit. She remembers the Archon; his sonorous declaration of the Kett's claim on Meridian. She recalls blood seeping from her brother's nose; his half-lidded eyes fighting to stay awake--be _alive_ and her heart beating against her chest like a war drum.

“Hang in there!” She calls, muted by the Remnant's mechanical melody. The cry is for her brother and herself. Go on. Push forward. Keep fighting until Meridian brings forth new life.

 

And she remembers nothing else.

 _Gabby._ A voice ripped from her memories beckons her. _Gabby_ . It ripples through the walls and into her skin. _Gabby_. She remembers it; Meridian control reveals her beauty before she faces a monster determined to snuff it out.

“Gabby?” Vetra's soft green eyes prevent her from tipping over the edge. “You good?”

“Yeah, I'm fine.”

She grasps Vetra's arms and lifts herself up. _Gabby_. The sound of her name stings; a shunned memory buried within her cerebral cortex bursts at the seams. Her glass-like legs buckle but Vetra’s steel grip catches her before she falls.

“Seriously, we can sit here and rest for a bit,” Vetra says. They didn't ask her to rest after her father's death; didn't ask her to rest when her twin brother fell into a coma; nor when she was seven levels deep beneath a mountain of her insecurities. She had it after through piles of paperwork for Tann.

“No, I'm fine.” She shakes her head slightly. “Did anyone else hear anything?”

“You mean, aside from the Remnant and doors sliding back and forth?” Cora says. “I haven't.”

Vetra shakes her head. “No sounds to me either.”

“I think this place is calling to me. It's calling my name and it's taken the sound of Jean's voice while he was--we were here three years ago.” Ryder blurts out, the words spilling from her lips like a river. Vetra and Cora look at each other and back at her. They must think she's fucking crazy right now.

“Okay, I believe you,” Vetra sighs. “but how can his voice lead you to the central chamber?”

“I think that's what he--it's trying to do,” Ryder says, pressing the lights running along the wall. “It's definitely not coming from outside.” She points at the door they've passed through five times in the last hour. “I think it's telling me to go there.”

“Yeah, and we'll round another corner and come back right where we started,” Cora says, placing a gentle hand on Ryder's shoulder. It's not comforting if that's her intention. “Look, I wasn't with you when you saved Mer--your brother but I know coming back here is tough. It has a lot of bad memories. If we were back in Habitat 7, I'm sure I'll hear Alec's voice again.”

“I was there too, Cora. I saw him die,” she snaps. Cora winces but she continues. “But this isn't like Habitat 7. Something in there is calling me.”

“I'm just saying we need a plan. We can't run around chasing voices from our past.” Cora removes her hand. “We'll give you a minute.”

She leaves and stands by a corner opposite of the door, her back facing Ryder. Vetra lingers. She gives Ryder a look, tugging at her mandibles. “She's right you know.”

She follows Cora at the corner.

 _They're not voices from my past_ , Ryder thinks. When she dreams of Meridian or her memories replay these sequence of events, Jean is frantic--frightened which she always thought he was incapable of showing. The voice mimicking her brother's tone is calm as if he waits for the killing blow by the Archon.

 _Gabby_. The voice beckons her. Ryder closes her eyes. There must be something behind the hushed whispers.

 _Gabby_. She walks towards the door. Sparks dance on the façade. She doesn't recall seeing this while passing through the door over and over again.

White noise. She touches the sparks.

White noise. Gabby. And a different one; faint behind the Gabbys and the white noise.

_Girl of space, come to me._

The room shatters into a million different stars as she collapses on the ground.

  


Gabriela wakes up.

She lies beside an interface; a plateau of moving plates stands before her body.. Ryder stands up. The room she’s in is vast, divided into quarters by a river of lights. Each quarter has its own interface. At the centre of the room hangs an Architect; it's usual glowing red eye dark and dead. This is the central chamber.

“Cora, Vetra,” she calls and receives no answer. Fuck, how did she even get in here? The last thing she remembers is her head feeling faint and collapsing on the ground. She remembers the door and the sparks covering its façade.

They couldn't be far from here. Unless they abandoned her. Shit, they can't have, couldn't they? Got tired of the damn voices in her head and found another solution elsewhere. Meridian has hundreds of secret chambers they haven't explored.

Nothing terraforms a planet other than its core and Meridian's heart is at her grasp. She hovers her hand over the interface.

_SAM?_

Nothing, not even a quiet chirp signalling the AI's presence. Gabriela wraps her arms around her waist; cold air puffs from her lips. The temperature has dropped a few degrees since she was last here. Maybe, it's always been cold and she was busy shooting Kett to notice.

Light rays shine upon the throne on top of the plateau. The rays converge at a point on the throne. A flash. Gabriela shields her eyes from the blinding light. For a second, she catches a glimpse of her brother sitting on the throne. He disintegrates and she’s half-convinced this is another one of her mind tricks.  

A woman bathed in light emerges. She descends the steps; her feet glide on the ground. She approaches Gabriela with regal poise--a royal addressing her audience.

Gabriela sees her features clearly. They resemble the angara: round lips, high cheekbones and bulging eyes but long the tentacles protruding from her head isn’t a feature Gabriela has seen on an angara nor are her gills nor the dots under her eyes and the lines on her forehead.

The plateau peeks out from her features, faded like a reflection in a fogged mirror. She is a holo. Not real.

She opens her mouth; words spill from her lips. If Gabriela listens closely, she can dissect the 1s and 0s from her sentence strings. She heard the same patterns from the Remnant. Back then, Gabriela paid them no mind. The machines’ language had different rules from their own, and she only understood the bits.

The woman frowns. She touches Gabriela’s brow; her webbed fingers are tangible for a hologram.

“Find the waking world. Save us,” she says, angelic and sweet, unlike the jagged language of the machines.

Questions race through her mind but before Ryder asks any of them, the woman touched her forehead against hers. Gabriela gasps. Her lungs burn like lava. She tries moving her arms but they remain locked. Stars fill her vision; her eyes involuntarily close. She tries gasping for air but the pressure pushes in.

She’s drowning.

 

It’s a common saying, life flashes before your eyes as you die.

But instead of some poetic narrative recalling her life’s accomplishments (if there are), her failures (she can start with this one) and her regrets (the title of a film about her life), she sees Meridian-- _two_ Meridians. They sit side by side like a comparison holo from the net. The first Meridian--the one on her left is a picturesque caricature you only see on postcards. Rolling green pastures line the horizon; a clear blue sky and trees reaching for the heavens. The second Meridian--the one on the right is a perfect replica of the storm raged environment outside of Meridian Control: a barren, desolate wasteland.

And in between the images is a spinning blue world. Light shoots out of it and turns the planet green.

“Find the waking world. Save us.”

Great, if she dies now or is dead, this ominous phrase is the last she’ll ever hear.

 

The woman lets go. Ryder takes a breath. She collapses on the ground.

“Find the waking world. Save us,” the woman says once more.

The last Ryder sees before going black is her smile.


	2. showtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After passing out in Meridian's control chamber, Ryder wakes up in the Pathfinder's quarters on Port Meridian. The storm has cleared but she soon finds out, not everything is exactly the way it was before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...uh this didn't really follow my intended posting schedule. I was in a writing rut for a bit and then, now I'm back to university in my final year :'). I've also signed up for the Reverse Mass Effect Big Bang this year so I'm not entirely sure how fast I can push out the next chapter. As a consolation, this is a longer chapter than (my) usual. If I manage to keep some readers from when I last posted, thank you so much for your patience! I'm definitely still working on this thing and I will see it through!
> 
> I would also like to thank Laura_Moriarity from the MEFF Writer's discord for betaing parts of this chapter! Also shoutout to my friend, Maggie for giving me my own channel on discord to sort of talk about this project! <3

Ryder wakes up screaming.

She has a nightmare. In it, she was alone in Meridian's central chamber and a woman with tentacles for hair drowned her in a river. She called and cried for help but nobody came. Then she had visions of two Meridians: one green and full of life, the other, a barren wasteland. Then the woman leaned against her ear and whispered, find the waking world, save us.

Ryder rubs her eyes. The woman’s phantom touch lingers on her skin and her voice rings hollow in her head. Find the waking world, save us. A chill crawls up her spine. It wasn’t a dream. It was real.

She clutches the material beneath her fingers. Soft, safe. A tube protrudes from her arm, connecting to a drip bag beside her bed. Meridian’s night sky peeks through her window, void of dark clouds and a life-threatening storm and populated with endless stars. They shine a light through her room. She can tell from the ship models on the display rack, the bookshelf filled with her father’s favourite books—Tagalog novels he was ecstatic to share with the angara if he lived—and the half-abandoned paperwork littering the desk, she is in the Pathfinder’s quarters aboard the Hyperion.

 _Her_ quarters, she corrects herself and it’s not on the Hyperion either. Tann’s official title for this area of the Hyperion not floating in space is Port Meridian’s Residential Plan. The plan is scattered on her side table, which she was supposed to review and approve three days ago before Tann’s Landing Day celebrations.

“SAM?” She calls.

“Yes, Pathfinder?”

Ryder exhales. Good thing, she hasn’t fucked him up after their mission on Meridian Control. “SAM! I’m glad you’re here.”

“I am glad to be here as well, Gabriela,” SAM says.”Although, I find this demeanour unusual.”

She rubs her nape, “Is that a bad thing?”

“I do not have concrete data to measure whether your attitude is bad or good. I will remind you my purpose is to understand the human psyche. Your father made me to have a symbiotic relationship with my host.” SAM expresses his understanding of sadness by lowering his voice. “In the three and a half years I have lived in your body, we haven’t developed such a relationship.”

It’s true. She and SAM do not have the perfect symbiotic relationship her father dreamed of. SAM is a tool, and so is she. Guess, it’s another one of Alec Ryder’s legacies she messed up.

She never asked for an AI to reside in her head. She didn’t ask for this job either.

“SAM, you saw the woman right?” She changes the subject.

“Yes,” he responds after a long pause and Ryder wonders if she has hurt his feelings, “would you like me to run a dream analysis?”

Aside from the ethical considerations of an AI prodding her subconsciousness (as if there aren’t ethical considerations for an AI residing in her head), how is SAM equipped for analyzing dreams? She can’t imagine her Dad fed him bogus articles from the extranet about dream analysis.

“Alec Ryder did,” SAM answers. Right, he can read her mind. “He wanted a complete understanding of the human psyche, including your dreams. With your father’s research, I am capable of giving you a full analysis with an accuracy of 98%”

“Alright,” Ryder grins. “Humour me.”

“Based on the image conjured in your dreams, the woman is most certainly a ruler of a moon kingdom.”

Ryder blinks. She can’t tell if SAM is joking or Dad’s research is complete bullshit. “Right, I think you need to work on the two percent. But, I’m pretty sure this wasn’t a dream. This woman I met, well a _holo_ of a woman, was so real. It did feel like she was speaking to me in Meridian Control.”

“Pathfinder, you did fall unconscious after touching the door.” She never heard him sound so concerned.

“Yeah, I know that.”

“You never made it to Meridian’s control chamber.”

Her heart feels like it stopped. “What…what do you mean?”

“After you fell unconscious, I tried restarting your cardiovascular system,” SAM explains. “However, I discovered I was severed from your neutral network which prevented me from sending a pulse to your heart.”

“So you were ejected, like in Khi Tasira?” The words roll off her tongue like jagged stones. She died again, did she? And the vision she saw was a hallucination of an afterlife she finds no comfort.

“No, my connection with you was stable. You were unconscious but still breathing but there was a…block between your implant and your neural network. It caused a disturbance in my connection.”

“A block?”

“A metaphysical barrier,” SAM says, “white noise if I were to describe it in familiar terms.”

“So,” Her throat feels dry. None of this makes any sense. The woman must have fucked with her brain so she can think their meeting is all a dream. “If I never made it to the central chamber, what happened with the storm?”

“Lieutenant Harper and Vetra carried you out of Meridian’s Vault. When they escaped, the skies were clear and no storms in sight. The science team at Meridian confirmed the Vault was stable.”

“Then how the fuck was Meridian fixed if I never made it to Meridian control?” She mutters, clenching her blanket.

“I cannot answer that.” She isn’t asking. “I did not fully restore our connection until Lieutenant Harper and Vetra brought you to my node on Port Meridian.”

“Would you like me to increase your serotonin levels?” SAM suggests. She knows SAM wants to help. It's his purpose, why he was made. But goddamnit, she wants to handle her problems on her own.

“Can you just open the log?” Ryder retorts. The therapist suggests she writes down her thoughts instead of letting them brew. Ryder isn't much of a writer. She can't pen ideas onto paper like the authors of her father's novels who started revolutions with their writings. Ryder can't even convince Tann to reinstate her title. So she vocalizes them, uses the logs to record her thoughts and saying them out loud makes them less daunting.

“As you wish, Pathfinder.” SAM says reluctantly. An interface opens on her Omni tool. There's a sidebar with three years worth of entries. Ryder presses “Add New Entry.”

“SAM, don't record this,” Ryder says.

“I know.”

The wheel on the interface spins. Ryder clears her throat. Three years later and an entry list nearing a thousand, she's still unsure how she's supposed to start. The therapist suggested beginning with the date and time.

“March 16, 2823, 3:23 AM. A week before I turn 29, I guess,” she chuckles.

Shit, now what? After date and time, she’s not sure where to go. The beginning is what her therapists suggested, building it up to a climax like some story in a fairy tale. Her story begins with the control chamber. A mystical woman appears out of nowhere, touches her forehead, shows her prophetic visions of a barren Meridian and tells her to find the waking world.

No, it begins with the storm. They were hosting a Landing Day party, the third anniversary of Meridian's founding. Tann was in the middle of a speech about their accomplishments in seeking a new frontier when the ground shook and the sky turned dark. Tann ordered her to help with evacuations. Ryder had other plans

No, it begins three years ago. She’s chasing the Archon through Meridian’s beautiful biome. They have no time to sit and admire the view because her brother is on that fucking ship and two hours later, they’ll have this weird connection which almost killed him. Three years later, it’s the top entry on her never-ending lists of regrets.

The clock ticks 3:40. The recording has been on for nearly twenty minutes. She considers closing the log and having another blank entry but the images of the two Meridians are vivid in her mind. Find the waking world, what's that supposed to mean?

“I saw a woman in Meridian control,” she begins, “some kind of holo or something. Anyway, she's not like any angara I've seen before. She showed me these visions and told me to find the waking world to save her. I think she's trying to tell me something like Meridian is gonna collapse if I don't find the waking world soon.”

She mentions the storm and hearing her brother's voice. Closing the log, she wills herself to sleep. The visions of Meridian and the waking world haunt her dreams.

—

“She’s still out. What do they want from her?”

“I don’t know but knowing Tann, it doesn’t sound good.”

“Knowing Tann, she’ll be back reading reports about housing plans for sleeping residents instead of pathfinding.”

“Yeah, we should have been out there exploring not working desk jobs and doing paperwork.”

“Well, my jobs don’t have any paperwork.”

“And that’s why I don’t trust your contacts. Regardless, these reports sound terrifying.”

“What reports sound terrifying?” Ryder yawns. Two blurred figures are in her quarters; one leans against a table, looking at their Omni tool while the other sits close. The rough skin against her hand and the sharp fingernail drawing nonsense on her skin feels safe. She knows the secrets of this palm more than hers, traced the same patterns these talons draw on her skin; hard enough it leaves marks but not blood. Never blood.

“Vetra?”

Vetra squeezes her hand. In the language they’ve created which only Ryder and Vetra have fluency, the gesture means everything in the world for her, simple as it may be.

“You’re awake. Good,” Cora stands by her bed. “It’s not as if we haven’t seen you pass out before—”

“Or die,” Ryder adds wryly.

“Or die, yes.” One corner of Cora’s mouth quirks up, shaping a lopsided smile about Ryder’s own joke about her death, _deaths_.

Vetra ignores her comment. “The doctor ran some tests and she said you’re vitals are good. It’s not smart for me to question the word of a doctor but I want to hear it from you,” Vetra tilts her head, her mandibles drooping. “Are you feeling better?”

“I am.” A lie.

Vetra’s mandibles twitch. Her mouth parts slightly but Ryder silences any comment she has. “So, what were these reports you talked about earlier?”

“So you know I have these contacts, right,” Vetra begins, “and they’ve been reporting anomalies throughout Heleus. It sounds dangerous.”

“Look, it’s probably best to show you.” Cora hands the data pad to Ryder. Two emails are on the interface. Ryder selects the first one with the grainy image of a towering, snake-like Remnant creature.

 

> To: V
> 
> From: [REDACTED]
> 
> Subject: You gotta check this out!
> 
> _[Attached to the email is a file name called “A-beauty.png”]_
> 
> After weeks of chasing her down, I finally caught the perfect shot! Now, time to return back to the lab, examine her vertebrae, do Remnant even have bones? You probably don’t know the answer to that. Damn, if only I can get a closer look. Every time I come closer to her within 50 feet, she destroys my equipment by unleashing a powerful EMP.
> 
> Oh and hope she likes it too! I mean, maybe she can help but I highly doubt she can survive this.
> 
> P.S. By the goddess, the desert just went dark and my sensors are spinning like crazy!!

Ryder checks the holo again. The desert dunes rolling in the background shows the holo is either from Eos, Elaaden or another desert planet they haven’t discovered. Heleus is teeming with those.

The Remnant, however, is too thin and too large to be an Architect. Ryder can’t distinguish the construct’s features but the cascading ellipses forming its body resembles the Abyssal.

“Who is this from?” Ryder asks. Vetra’s contacts aren’t the morally outstanding citizens but they often give the information Nexus hides. She only wants to know if they’re from a reputable source.

“A scientist from New Tuchanka,” Vetra responds.

“She sounds excitable.”

“Yeah, she’s been studying Remnant tech for years,” Vetra smiles fondly. The message bears similarities with the tone of another Remnant expert Ryder knows. Her heart constricts at the thought, and she mirrors Vetra’s smile to keep her eyes from burning.

"The Abyssal never bothered us while we were on Elaaden," Ryder says.

"And the Abyssal hasn't bothered anyone since then. Believe me, the krogan have tried fighting it. Usually, the Abyssal ignores them or if they get too close, launch them across the wasteland with a massive EMP," Vetra explains. "Or so I've heard."

"Still, it's not connected to any other Remnant sites?"

Vetra shrugs. "Who knows. Not even the Angara have figured out what the Abyssal is supposed to be."

Cora's eyes twinkle with wonder. "I've heard it's a communication network. A beacon for the Remnant."

"Or it could just be another giant Remnant worm."

“Hmm, but what about Elaaden going dark?” Ryder points out.

Cora suggests. “Are we sure it’s not going through its night cycle? Most planets have one and Elaaden just happens to have a longer rotational period.”

“Except Elaaden isn’t supposed to turn dark for another six years.” Vetra opens her Omni tool, showing plots with an increasing trend. “Plus recent data reports show increased in Remnant activity.”

 _Could it be because of the storm?_ Ryder thinks. They have to investigate.

If the Director allows them.

She swipes the email close and checks the other one.

 

> To: V
> 
> From: [REDACTED]
> 
> Subject: Blue Vines
> 
> V, I think you might want to check this out. It could be important to her, you know.
> 
> _[Attached to the email is a transcript of a chat from 6:12 AM (NTT) to 7:00 AM(NTT)]_

 

\-- **Claude Debussy** started messaging **THE MIDNIGHT CREW** at 6:12 AM (NTT)--

 **Claude D.** : Sent a photo

The holo shows blue vines wrapped around a pillar supporting what looks to be a balcony. Blue vines have also trailed across its metal bars. Perhaps, it's the holo's questionable quality but they don't look like vines or even any other plants in Andromeda.

The neon lights peeking from the side tell her the holo is taken outside Tartarus.

 **Claude D.:** This hasnt happened before right???? Unless I was really high that one time it did  
**Claude D.:** Also I swear I'm not high. You know I've been clean for almost two years.

\-- **The Count** is online--  
\-- **Aetheva of Thessia** is online--  
\-- **Eva d.C.** is online--

 **Aetheva O.** : Sent a photo

Blue vines crawl up the walls on the cave, similar to the ones outside Tartarus. From the angle of the vines, the holo wouldn’t be out of place in a horror flick. Maybe, a movie set in the Badlands about seemingly normal plants but once the sun sets, they transform into killer zombie plants called MULCH.

As if Kadara has no monsters hiding behind pleasant faces.

 **Aetheva O.** : Nah, you're not high.  
**Eva D.** : These vines have been appearing since last night. They appear to be harmless at first but when we came back this morning, they've tripled in size and has covered everything in the cave.  
**The C.** : Tell me where they come from.  
**Eva D.** : Everywhere.  
**The C:** I meant their source. Their origin.  
**Eva D.** : I got you the first time. They're sprouting from everywhere, the walls and the ground. There doesn't seem to be a focal point. We'd investigate further but a number of our people are sick. [REDACTED]  
**Aetheva O.** : And our tech is fucked. If we stay here, we'd lose a lot of data. It will be worse than the [REDACTED]  
**Eva D.:** We've evacuated our people to [REDACTED] but the vines are sprouting here too.  
**The C.** : @Claude D. How are things over there?  
**Claude D.:** Just fine and dandy!!!! I have not been affected by the blue vines!  
**Claude D.** : But what @Aetheva O. and @Eva D. have reported is the same over here.  
 

“That one is from a Collective agent,” Vetra points out.

“Not the Charlatan?”

She stifles a laugh. “Can you imagine the Charlatan calling me V?”

Ryder grins. “Aww, and I thought you two were best friends.”

“We’re not,” Vetra deadpans, clicking her mandibles with her crest.

Cora sighs. “Those vines aren’t like any plants I’ve seen.”

“I don’t think they’re plants,” Ryder says. She zooms into a vine, showing the crystalline branch. “I’m not an expert in botany but I’m pretty sure plants don’t shine like diamonds.”

“They’re also perfectly cut for plants that are supposed to have sprouted from nowhere,” Vetra says,” unless the Charlatan has hired a royal gardener.”

Cora snickers. “I wouldn’t put it past him. He probably has a professional weed killer too. Those would be great for a garden.”

Ryder snorts. “Maybe, he can finally take care of those herbal entrepreneurs in the Badlands.” 

She shakes her head. “Anyway, do we know anything else about the vines? Other than they pose a crisis for the Collective”

“No, not that I’m aware of. See, this contact isn’t very active in sending reports.”

“I’ve heard some rumours from the science team that the pools in Kadara are recently shrinking at an alarming rate,” Cora says. “Maybe the vines have something to do with it?”

Could be. Or the anomalies are a small drop in a larger and daunting pond. They have to investigate. If Tann allows them.

Speaking of the Director, “Does Tann know anything about this?”

As if summoned, Tann marches in with Addison following by his heels. The Director is oddly content, more so than his usual perky demeanour. His lips are curved wide, stretching across his face like a rubber mask. Meanwhile, Director Addison is in complete contrast. Deep bags line under her weary eyes and auburn strands stick out from her cropped hair. The last time Ryder has seen her as decomposed is when she first arrived on Meridian in 2819.

He turns to Vetra and Cora. “Director Addison and I would like to see Ryder alone, please.”

They both look at Ryder, waiting for her response. She dismisses them with a nod. Whatever Tann wants, she rather deals with this herself.

“How are you feeling?” Tann asks once Vetra and Cora leave.

“Good, I mean my head still feels totally fucked up but at least I’m not dead,” Ryder replies.

Tann flashes a grin. “Great I’m glad you have recovered well. As soon you are cleared for duty, I’d like you to be back at the office. We have much to do after the Landing Day disaster. Director Addison will tell you more about it”

Addison coughs and lists details about her future assignment. Ryder rolls her eyes. Great, another chat about chores. It’s an insult to call office work duty when she hasn’t worn her Pathfinder mantle in a long time. Some of her assignment details are beneficial to the people of Meridian. Others, like the fundraising gala Tann wants to have in the spirit of Landing Day, does nothing but save face.

“You will be visiting the affected families on the 1st of April,” Addison mumbles. Her words slur together, creating an incoherent drawl. Ryder pities her. She wonders why Addison is so dishevelled. The director is always composed or tries to be even in times of distress.

“August Bradley has evacuated Prodomos into an underground facility in Site 2 due to the radioactive storms plaguing Eos. Christmas Tate has reported more depleting pools in—” Addison’s eyes widen. She stops reading when Tann glares at her.

Well, that answers her curiosity on Addison’s dishevelled state. And Tann knows more than he lets on.

“I’m sorry. I must have been reading on the wrong page,” Addison says, scrolling through her datapad.

Ryder leans forward. “No, tell us more, Director. What’s happening in Ditaeon?”

“Uhm—”

“That’s none of your concern, Ryder,” Tann says with a razor-edged voice that can break his upbeat facade. “Now, please continue with Ryder’s assignments on Meridian.”

“As the human pathfinder and the founder of all of these outposts, I believe Director Tann, this matter is of my concern,” Ryder says, mimicking Tann’s sharp yet exuberant tone.

“Trust me, the Pathfinders and the APEX teams have protected these outposts in your name and they will continue to do so. You should worry about your people here, in your people’s golden world, Meridian.”

“And what if these anomalies all over Heleus are from something bigger that neither APEX nor the other Pathfinders can solve? At least, let my team and I investigate.”

Tann raises his voice. “And waste credits on outfitting the Tempest and supporting your missions when these credits could be used for improving Meridian or finding golden worlds for other Initiative species? Pathfinder, humans aren’t the only species who need a golden world nor are you the only pathfinder.”

“No, I’m not,” Ryder says. “I’m the Pathfinder who saved you all.”

Tann clenches his fist tightly; the skin around his knuckles turn purple. He exhales and a smile is plastered on his mouth. “Ryder, I do not wish to discuss this issue further. You are to report to the office as soon as you are cleared. That’s final.”

He spins around his heels and marches to the door with his hands pressed behind his back. Addison regards Ryder with pity before following Tann at the door. She’s sorry, for them both and dealing with the prick pulling the reins up top. They can’t be blamed if the world sets on fire.

“You’re just mad you can’t control me, aren’t you?. That I’m the anomaly in your system,” Ryder yells.

Tann tenses. He stops for a moment but doesn’t turn.

He walks outside with Addison by his heels.

Ryder falls on her pillow. Fuck the Nexus and their bureaucratic bullshit.

—

Dr. Carlyle clears her for duty after a few days. He prescribes her pills for headaches and sends her off. No lectures about being careful synchronizing with SAM and the Remnant as he used to.

She pulls her long black hair into a ponytail and dresses in her office clothes. Mornings on Meridian are a thing of beauty. Warm light shines on the freshly trimmed grass. The fruit of the tree outside her window gleams like diamonds and the sky is clear blue, void of dark clouds. This picturesque view can only be replicated on Earth. No wonder her people call Meridian their golden world. 

Finishing her coffee, Ryder checks her Omni tool. Tann has returned to the Nexus early this morning and should be available to send her the agenda for the day. None, no agenda. Not even a copy of his spiel in her quarters a few days ago. She shouldn't be surprised. Tann must be entertaining sponsors who can blow smoke up his ass.

Her Omni tool blinks. It's an email from Addison. Strange, she should've returned to the Nexus with Tann this morning.

 

> To: Gabriela Ryder
> 
> From: Foster Addison
> 
> Come see me at my office. It is an urgent matter.

Ryder quirks an eyebrow. Addison's urgent matter can either mean assisting the scientist in Harvarl study rocks or deciding financial plans for the outposts. Ryder hates both.

It beats waiting for Tann's agenda.

She walks out of her apartment and makes her way to Foster Addison's office.

Five minutes later, she receives the agenda from Tann along with the transcript of their meeting on the 16th.

Ryder clicks 'DELETE.'

 

Turns out Ryder isn't the only one Addison contacted for her urgent matter. Nor is she the first.

When she arrives outside Addison's office, Cora comes out of the sliding doors with a stack of datapads in her hand.

"I guess you also got a message from Addison about an urgent matter," Ryder says, keeping her voice levelled. This is a waste of time. If Addison's urgent matter desperately needs the Pathfinder's assistance, then she shouldn't have contacted someone else.

Cora's eyes shift from side to side. "Yes, yes she did. I have to go now. She has uh...an assignment for me."

She tries walking past Ryder but Ryder steps in front of her. "So you're not even going to tell me what it's about?"

"I can't. Not here in the open," Cora whispers firmly. "Trust Director Addison. She wants to help."

She speeds past Ryder without looking back.

Trust Addison? She may not be as shrewd and conniving as Tann but she's the same as any Citadel politician she claims to dislike. Still, she remembers Addison's mistake during their meeting. She may know more about the anomalies than she lets on.

An interface flickers on the door showing Addison. She looks more composed than their previous meeting but the deep lines on her skin tell a different story.

“Ryder, you may come in,” she announces.

—

"I apologize for the mess. The last few weeks were tough," Addison says.

Ryder scans the room. Aside from a couple of books in disarray and the wilting plant behind the desk, the office is perfectly pristine. 

"Uh, yeah, it's fine, I think?" Ryder says. "And don't apologize, you looked like shit when I last saw you."

Ah shit, she didn't just say that to the director. She covers her hand with her mouth. She expects Addison to kick her out and drop this urgent matter. Instead, Addison laughs, bright and colourful; a complete contrast with her past demeanour. Ryder finds herself mimicking her genuine smile.

"It's fine, Ryder. It's fine." She wipes a tear from the corner of her eyes.

"Now, I'm sure you didn't bring me here to share pleasantries."

"I had an entire speech for this but I'll cut the bullshit," Addison says, "I'm reinstating you as a pathfinder."

What? She's not serious, is she?

"Director Addison, this is nice and all," Ryder says with a tight smile. "But Director Tann said my place is in Meridian."

Addison slams her fist on the table, startling Ryder. "Forget about what Tann said! This is a matter of the stability of our budding colonies."

Colonies. Ryder tenses at the word. The thrill of adventure has blinded her from the Andromeda Initiative's purpose in Heleus. But it's not like the old days though. They're here for exploration not to claim land.  

(In the old days, exploration is just a pretty word for colonization.)

Addison says. "Since the storm on Meridian, our worlds have been acting differently. Depleting water resources, radioactive haze, frigid temperatures, aggressive wildlife are just some of the reports I’ve received. We’ve sent APEX teams to investigate with no luck or they end up dead. I’m running out of options.”

Ryder crosses her arms. "I thought Tann said APEX could handle it."

"Tann is a conniving weasel. He only cares about credits and looking good for the people. The other pathfinders can't handle it either. As far as I know, they're off searching for a homeworld for their people. You're the only one I have, Ryder."

"And you think I can fix this?"

"You are the Pathfinder who saved us all."

Ryder smiles. Pathfinder. It's all she ever wanted in the last three years. A true pathfinder, not the pathfinder who sits in an office, writing reports and filing paperwork. Her heart thrums at the image of seeing the stars again.

Although, there is one measly thing which has bothered her throughout their meeting.

"What's in it for you?" Ryder asks.

"I'm sorry?"

"If I help you save Heleus, what would you gain out of it?"

"The safety and security of our people," Addison says frankly.  

Ryder quirks an eyebrow.

Addison sighs. "Look, we don't always see eye to eye but I'm not Tann. I want to help our colonies, our people. I hear these reports every day, and am I supposed to keep silent because they don't look good for the press? Am I supposed to rely on APEX and hope for the best? We came to Andromeda with nothing but hopes and dreams and look where it got us. I'm not asking you to trust me, Ryder. I only want your help."

She stands up and extends her hand. "So what do you say?"

Ryder takes her hand and gives it a firm shake. She can't say she trusts Addison or even likes her but for the sake of their people, she'll work with her.

"Thank you," Addison says, sitting back on her chair. "I've asked your lieutenant, Cora Harper to send dossiers for your crew. Vetra Nyx is preparing requisitions for your equipment, while your pilot, Kallo Jath is already on the Nexus, prepping the Tempest."

"And what should I do for the rest of the day? Since I've officially resigned as Meridian's office secretary," Ryder says.

"Take a day off?" Addison suggests. "Tomorrow's going to be a long day. I'll see you on the Nexus early in the morning."

Addison turns back to her terminal, and Ryder gets up to leave. Before she opens the door, she turns to Addison and says. "I guess Tann doesn't know anything about this."

"I'll take care of it," Addison says without looking up.

—

E.R.

Elizabeth Riley.

Ellen Ryder.

 _Or Ellen Reyes, her maiden name_. Ryder thinks as she pads towards the cryo bay. Hyperion’s halls are dark at night. Her only source of light is her Omni tool.

Rubbing her arms, she feels the frigid air seep through the cryo bay’s door. She keys in the code, and a blast of cold air hits her when it opens.

“SAM, is there a way to warm up this place?” Ryder asks.

“I can increase your body temperature,” SAM suggests.

Ryder frowns. She’s not allowing SAM to control her body. “Yeah, uh, I think I can manage.”

The Cryo Bay is silent. Only the low him from the cryo pods show there's life here. She walks to the centre of the room. Thousands of unopened cryo pods line on the wall before her. She wishes she was one of them. They’ll wake up to their promised land without fear.

Ryder presses a key on her Omni tool. A cryo pod from the left slides in front of her; _Elizabeth Riley_ is engraved on the plate. Ellen Ryder. Mom.

She hasn’t changed at all. She’s trapped in a container, across the stars from where she expected to die. And Gabriela is saddled with the responsibility of making a choice, let her out or keep her frozen.

Three years later, she hasn’t found her answer.

Ryder sits down. “Hey, Mom.”

It still feels weird talking to her like this. She tells herself Mom can hear her; it makes speaking to a cryo pod easier. “So, I’m going back to the stars again. Yeah, yeah I know, you’ll say I never left the stars since I dream about them every night.”

No answer.

Of course, it’s a cryo pod; an inanimate object that cannot speak or listen.

Gabriela continues. “They need me again and I’m scared I’m not the hero they expect me to be. Yeah, I know. It’s not as if I’ve been silent that I saved Heleus. I mean Addison asked for my help because I saved the cluster.”

She sighs, this is a terrible idea. Mom isn’t listening. No one is. 

“I figured you were here.”

Ryder jumps up. She charges her boitics and balls her hand into a fist. She looks around for her intruder only to find Vetra holding a bottle of champagne and two glasses.

“Vetra!” She breathes, diffusing her biotics. “Sorry, I thought you were a serial killer or something.”

Vetra chuckles. “I was going for a ‘surprise my girlfriend with 600-year-old champagne’ angle. But serial killer works too.”

“Ew, gross. I’m not into that.” She makes gagging noises before bursting into laughter.

“Champagne?”

“Sure, what for?”

Vetra pops open the champagne. The bubbles hiss and overflows out of the bottle. She pours one for Ryder, and one for herself. “Thought we could celebrate your reinstatement.”

“You knew about that?”

“Addison sent everyone, well everyone involved in the “project” a message about your reinstatement. She sounds excited.” She grins, clinking her glass against Ryder’s. The sound echoes loudly across the hallway, Ryder fears they woke the sleepers.

She sips her glass. The floral aroma fills her nose and leaves a rich, citrus taste on her tongue. It’s one of the best drinks she’s had on Andromeda and she dares not ask where Vetra got it.

“Her message wouldn’t be out of place from a romance novel then,” Ryder says. Addison expresses her emotions through prose. The more intense they are, the more colourful her writing becomes.

Ryder wishes she has that craft.

Vetra leans against a wall. “So why are you in the cryo bay at this hour?”

“Can’t sleep so I thought I’d visit…her—Mom, I mean before we go,” Ryder sips her glass. “Wanted some words of advice, I guess?”

From her mother, who’s trapped, (who is supposed to be dead), inside a cryo pod.

Vetra peels herself from the wall and stands beside Ryder. “And what advice did you want from her?”

She considers her question for a moment. Truthfully, she wants the answers to the universe. Mom was the smartest person she knew growing up. She had the answers to every single thing she asked.

“A reason.”

Vetra tilts her head to one side. “A reason?”

“Yeah, a reason why I still agreed to become the Pathfinder,” she answers. “Despite knowing this legacy isn't mine to own. Despite enduring years of bureaucratic bullshit from the directors. Despite how I was only able to do everything I’ve done because of SAM.”

“Here’s a reason. Well a couple of reasons, actually.” Vetra leans in, her breath tickling Ryder’s cheek. “You’re smart, funny, beautiful and can name the symbolism of all the Witches in _Madoka Magica_.”

Ryder giggles. “I don’t see how the last one would help.”

Vetra sets her glass down. She walks behind Ryder, sliding her arms around her waist and pulling her close. “Well, you can impress them with your expert knowledge of symbolism in a surreal show. Prove to them it’s similar to pathfinding and they’ll name you Pathfinder for life.”

She rests her chin on top of Ryder's head. "But seriously though, you fixed the Vaults, defeated the Archon and Kett, found Meridian and saved the Quarian Ark. Who can say they have achievements like those?"

"Maricon Shepard did," Ryder says. Commander Shepard risked her life on Elysium to rescue her fellow soldiers from batarian slavers. She is the first human Spectre and has stopped a geth invasion on the Citadel. Six hundred years later, they still talk about the Hero of the Citadel as if she accomplished her victories yesterday. How can Ryder compete with her?

"And she's thousands of light years away," Vetra says. "Besides, wasn't she KIA in 2183? At least, you lived to tell your tale."

Ryder untangles herself from Vetra's embrace and turns to face her. "That's true."

Vetra places a hand on her cheek. "You don't need a reason. You're the hero this cluster has and needs. And the directors--Nexus, should be thanking you."

She smiles, leaning into Vetra's touch. Ryder has many things she wants to say.  Like they can possibly be the last of the Milky Way as these Reapers have wiped them all out, or the Benefactor and Jien Garson's death. Or the woman in Meridian's control chamber who told her to find the waking world.

But she decided against it as not to ruin the moment.

"You think she'll like me?" Vetra asks, pointing her chin at the cryo pod.

"That's assuming we wake her up."

"Yeah, assuming we do," Vetra adds.

Ryder holds her hand, fitting her fingers in between her talons. "Of course, she would. May I ask what brought this up?"

Vetra stays silent for a moment.

"It's just, I've never had a mother before and none of my previous partners had good relationships with their mom or even had good mothers," she exhales, her eyes turning glassy. "From the way you talked about her, you're probably the first who has both. And I don't want to screw this up. I really don't."

Ryder squeezes her hand and looks into her bright green eyes. "She'll love you. She really would."

Neither of them says anything after that. They sit in silence, drinking champagne and enjoying each other's company in the Cryo Bay's stillness. But Ryder has a feeling, a hunch that they are not alone for wherever she turns, she catches a glimpse of a woman with a golden crown and tentacles protruding from her head.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are definitely appreciated

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments appreciated!
> 
> Finally, let's get this ball rolling! Thank you to everyone who's listened to me blather about this concept for like the last year and a bit! I do hope I get to see this through. I'm going to try to have semiweekly updates (around Friday/Saturday).


End file.
